One of those questions of less importance in August of 2020, our year of COVID, was, what are we going to do about football? I don't mean the league, of course. There was too much money to be lost. They were going to play regardless of pandemic. What I mean is, what were me and my dad going to do? Football is where we come together and bond. Football is something we've been getting together every Sunday to watch my whole adult life and most of my teenage years. For the most part, it started when I moved out of my parents' house and came home on Sundays to do laundry. Then, even when I bought my own house and got my own washer and dryer, I'd still go there on Sundays to watch. Football was when I'd visit and bring a bottle of whisky, and my pops and I would have a glass or two and watch. You might say that whisky and football were to my dad and me what peas and carrots were to Forrest Gump. But more importantly, football and whisky was also when my dad would get to talking, the masculine facade upheld by the violent sport in front of us and the spirits we imbibed, we could allow ourselves to be a bit more vulnerable in conversation and talk to each other about our lives in ways we wouldn't otherwise. I'm sure there's a fella or two here who might be reading this who understands. Football wasn't just important because we cared about who won or lost, you feeling me? And the game was going to be on, even with COVID keeping us apart. So what were we to do? We were in different houses, in different pockets of quarantine. Would we FaceTime? Jump out of our seats when our team scored on camera, high five virtually? "Why don't you watch out on the back deck?" my wife suggested. "Really?" I said. "Yeah, we can move the TV out there, set it on the table, and since it's on Fox, you can hook up an antenna to get reception out there. Set the chairs up six feet apart. Drink your whisky." And so, beginning in September of 2020 (since the NFL skipped pre-season) this is exactly what we did. My wife and I would line up on either side of the flatscreen after we'd unhooked it, and bring it out to the back deck, set it up with the deck furniture in proper social distancing procedure, and my dad and I would watch the game. This season, of course, we're both vaccinated. My dad even got his booster last week, but I have kids and they're not vaccinated, and it's not super cold yet, even in the northeast, and so we're still doing it. I'm still bringing the tv out back, we're still huddled up, even as the temperatures drop. "Could we get a fire pit?" I asked my wife. "Yes." "This one looks good." "Yeah, it's all right, but I've done my research, this one's better." "Okay, let's do it." So now, my dad and I are gathered around a fire pit. And some nights, for the late game, 4:15, 4:30, my wife brings out dinner. And on those nights, she also sends my dad home with dinner for my mom. I understand that so far I haven't mentioned The Whistler PX I Love You at all. But I swear, everything I just told you matters. Do you recognize something? How amazing my wife is? Suggesting we watch out back? Helping me carry the tv out? Feeding not just me but my dad? Sending food home for my mom? Sometimes my wife joins us in watching the game. She doesn't like football all that much, but she likes whisky, and particularly, Irish whiskey. Do you see where this is going? I wanted to get her an Irish whisky to say thank you for looking out for us. Thank you for making this special ritual I have with my dad continue to happen even through a global pandemic. And so, I see The Whistler has made this whiskey called PX I Love You. Finished in sherry casks. And the labeling and marketing is just screaming, buy this as a present for someone you love. So I do. Around Saint Patrick's Day her boss bought her a bottle of Jameson Black Barrel and she liked having her own bottle, one that wasn't mine, one she didn't have to ask me, "Can I have some of this?" And so I figured, if she was going to join me and my dad around the fire pit she should have something special. And....is it special? Well...it's good. She cracked it open tonight and shared a glass with me over shoofly pie. And I certainly think it's good (the pie wasn't bad either). But I'm not sure I share the enthusiasm of the ten other reviewers here, so I suppose that means I was expecting a bit more from it. Oh, how can I put it? Although this is an Irish whiskey, I think anyone who's a Scotch lover might understand this: The Whistler PX I Love You drinks like a younger Highland Park 12 Year Viking Honor. The nose is strong with the sherry sweetness and smoke. Those are the two most prominent aromas. The smoke isn't particularly peaty, just smoke, and underlying this is a slight band aid aroma you sometimes get with Islay, and I'm not sure what it's doing in a single malt Irish whiskey. It's fine with me, since I like a little band aid note, but it was putting my wife off. In fact, I didn't comment on it until she mentioned those exact words, "Band Aid" and I was like, yes it's there (she also compared it to the Laphroaig Cairdeas 2020 which was finished in PX Sherry casks, but that's not really a fair comparison: "That one was so much smoother and more robust...."; "Yes dear, but it was 117 proof and cost twice what this bottle cost."). As for the palate, it follows the nose. You feel like there's something underneath the sweetness, and there is, and it's the Irish fruit and honey, but that Irish fruit and honey (good band name there; or maybe the title of a Van Morrison record) only comes on the back end with a moderate finish. Don't get me wrong, it's a good whiskey, but I think the problem that arises when I say it drinks like a young Highland Park 12 is that it's the same price as the Highland Park. My wife mentioned last night that she wouldn't mind if I picked her up a bottle of Green Spot for Christmas, since I'd shared my GS Montelena with her, but I'd already ordered this. Well, the bottle said what I wanted it to say, I love you, I appreciate you. I just sort of wish the liquid inside did the job of the packaging. Maybe I'll suggest an ice cube, maybe a little air will mellow the sweetness and turn it into something more interesting. Maybe I'll get her that bottle of Green Spot eventually. With gifts they say it's the thought that counts, with whiskey, it's the flavor. This is good; but given what I wanted to say, I was hoping for better than good. Not great mind you, just...better. Especially for the price.